2016 Off To A Bloody Start as Shootings Double: 42 People Killed, 210 Hurt
By Kelly Bauer | January 27, 2016 8:23am | Updated on January 28, 2016 9:53am
CHICAGO — Forty-two people have been killed and 210 wounded so far in January, almost doubling last year's numbers.
It was the most violent January in years, according to DNAinfo Chicago data: In all, there were 199 shootings Jan. 1-25, while there were just 100 shootings over the same period last year. The data doesn't include the victims of violence from Tuesday into Wednesday, when three people were killed and another wounded.
Through early Tuesday, 42 people had been shot dead and 210 wounded, while last January saw 22 people dead and 98 wounded in shootings. On Monday alone, five people were shot and killed in just 11 hours.
Here's how this January compares to the past (data is for Jan 1-25 of each year listed):
How can Chicago Police combat the city's gang and gun violence?
Total shootings People killed People wounded
January 2016 199 42 210
January 2015 100 22 98
January 2014 70 16 63
January 2013 131 25 127
January 2012 116 28 107
January 2011 118 15 125
January 2010 82 12 90
The month of soaring shooting numbers follows a rise in gun violence throughout all of 2015. Last year saw 2,427 shootings and 468 homicides, the highest those numbers have been since 2012, when the city had 2,451 shootings and 506 homicides.
Chicago Police did not immediately respond to requests for comment on this month's rise in shootings.
But earlier this month DNAinfo Chicago found officers were making fewer stops, fewer gun arrests and confiscating fewer guns even while shootings had risen. Morale has sunk among officers, sources said.
"Taunting" on social media between gang members has played a significant role in this year's rise in shootings, interim Supt. John Escalante said in mid-January.
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Gang members have taken to Twitter and other social media platforms to argue, issue threats and arrange conflict-ridden meetups. One study found 74 percent of gang members who responded to a survey identified as frequent Internet users and said they "had established an online presence to gain respect for their gang."
Social media is the "modern gang graffiti," Escalante said.
To combat those gangs and gun violence, Chicago Police have partnered with the Cook County Sheriff's Office. Sheriff's deputies will join police patrols where violence has spiked in 2016, Escalante said. The departments seek to root out the city's gangs.
"Together we are going to send a clear message, a unified message, that gang violence in our communities will not be tolerated," Escalante said.
https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160127/bronzeville/2016-off-bloody-start-as-shootings-double-42-people-killed-210-hurt